The Lady Falcons of Florence swept through the district tournament. They only dropped one game in three matches. They clinched the No. 1 seed from District 6B in the Western Divisional Tournament that will be held this weekend in Libby. They will play Bigfork, the No. 4 seed from District 7B, at 2pm on Thursday, November 5th.
Florence opened against Ronan and came out a little sluggish. Coach Maloni Doty said her team did this against Ronan a couple of weeks ago as well. She said Ronan has some tough, aggressive players and it takes a bit for the Lady Falcons to get going. But the Lady Falcons did get going and won, 25-23, 25-19, and 25-13. Sabrina Hopcroft had 16 kills for Florence and three aces. She, Megan Kowalski and Jessica Dufresne had a solid front at the net with Kowalski making seven blocks alone. Hunter Doty DiBrito had 20 digs and Rylie Hawkins had 35 assists.
With the win, Florence moved on to the undefeated match on Saturday morning where they played Missoula Loyola. Doty said her team was not as focused as she would have hoped. Florence won the first game, 25-12 but then dropped the second game, 25-27.
“When we play Loyola, it’s about momentum, and when that momentum goes one way or another, that’s the way the game goes,” said Doty.
Florence rallied back and won the third game, 25-22, and then went on to win the match with a 26-24 win in game 4. Hopcroft had 32 of Florence’s 62 kills. She also had all three blocks. Hunter Doty DiBrito had 38 digs while the entire team dug up 113 balls. Natalie Drozdz had four aces and the team had 10.
“Natalie had some key aces in the match,” said Doty. “Her aces were on spot in both matches.”
Florence advanced to the championship game while Loyola had to play Anaconda for a chance to advance. Loyola won that match and then came back at 4:30 to play Florence again. The match was close with Florence trailing much of the first game. Another key ace by Drozdz gave Florence momentum and they went on to win, 25-22, 25-23, and 25-15. Well-placed cross court kills by Kezia Ward, tough play in the middle and strong outside hitting by Hopcroft kept Florence in the match. Florence finished with 47 kills with Hopcroft knocking down 21 kills. Dufresne had two of four blocks and Doty-DiBrito had 22 of 81 digs. Hawkins had 40 assists and three aces.
Doty said her team dropped a game early in the season to Eureka and expects them to be tough in the divisional tournament. Other teams taking part in the tournament are Thompson Falls, Ronan, Loyola, Libby and Anaconda. The top two teams will advance to Bozeman to the state tournament next week.
Victor hosted the District 9C tournament where teams from Seeley-Swan, Drummond, Philipsburg, Darby, Victor, Valley Christian and Alberton competed. Valley Christian won the championship defeating Seeley-Swan in two matches. Philipsburg defeated Victor and then Darby to finish third. Darby also defeated Drummond.
Philipsburg def. Darby, 3-0 (loser takes fourth)
Philipsburg def. Darby, 13-25, 25-20, 29-27, 25-22.
Kills – Darby 40 (Brianna Brickley 16), Philipsburg 22. Blocks – Darby 4 (Kylie Fisher 3), Philipsburg 2. Digs – Darby 12 (Fisher 5), Philipsburg 68. Assists – Darby 35 (Sierra Keating 35), Philipsburg 20. Aces – Darby 25 (Sarah Costello 6), Philipsburg 10
Seeley-Swan def. Victor, 3-0
Seeley def. Victor, 25-12, 25-3, 25-20.
Kills – Seeley 33, Victor 9 (Jamie Burdett 3). Blocks – Seeley 3, Victor 1 (Ellie Madrigal). Digs – Seeley 49, Victor 23 (Burdett 6). Assists – Seeley 27, Victor 10 (Ali Elliot 9). Aces – Seeley 9, Victor 10 (Summer Lee 6).
Victor def. Alberton 25-12, 25-20, 25-17. (loser out)
Kills – Alberton 12, Victor 27 (Jamie Burdett 7). Blocks – Victor 2. Digs – Alberton 33, Victor 17 (Jamie Burdett 5, Ali Elliott 5). Assists – Alberton 6, Victor 21 (Elliott 18). Aces – Alberton 3 (Three with 1), Victor 12 (Elliott 4).
